Maritime classics with a matching playlist make a menu fit for a kitchen party

After the release — and success — of her first cookbook, The Union Street Café Cookbook, Jenny Osburn had so many more recipes she wanted to share with the world.

And for that simple reason, she decided to write another. The Kitchen Party Cookbook was released Sept. 17 with a Nova Scotian kitchen launch party at the Noodle Guy.

And like any good kitchen party, Osburn has included a list of local music in the cookbook to help readers get the real Nova Scotia kitchen party vibe.

“That was a really fun project,” she said. “When we decided to go in the kitchen party direction, we knew that not everybody had a guitar to play at home. So, we put together a playlist of songs that are easy to sing along to, and it kind of evolved into something I hope represents a lot of Nova Scotian artists, both new and old.”

In addition to the list of songs in the cookbook, Osburn has created a YouTube playlist, where readers can simply press play and listen to all the Nova Scotian tunes needed for an authentic kitchen party.

“Music and food go hand-in-hand, they really belong together,” she said. “There’s no better example of that than a Maritime kitchen party.”

Osburn’s newest cookbook, which celebrates the relationships between food and music, The Kitchen Party Cookbook: Recipes for Potlucks, Shindigs, and Good Times in the Maritimes includes more than 60 recipes throughout 112 pages.

“A lot of the recipes are stolen from my mom. She threw a lot of great music parties when I was a kid,” said Osburn. “A lot of the recipes are ones that I’ve been making for years at the restaurant or at home, so they’re well tested. It’s just a matter of turning them into something that people can follow . . . but these recipes are very simple. Simple but flavourful.”

She admits that because she is so familiar with the recipes, it was difficult for her to make them into simple recipes that were easy to follow and hard to mess up.

“Even though ‘season things to taste’ works for me, that might not always for someone else,” she said. “I’ve been cooking since I was four or five, and I got to go through some of my old notes for this book. So, one of things that I have been making forever and I used to be famous for back in high school are these little samosas. That’s one of things I’m most excited about serving.”

Another part of the cookbook that Osburn is excited about is the fact that the entire book is made in the Annapolis Valley. It is printed by Gaspereau Press, and designed by local artist Laura MacDonald who hand-pressed the covers so that each one is unique.

Osburn’s good friend Monica Beaton also created a Nova Scotian food map of where to find all the best and freshest ingredients around the province.

“I’m not keeping any secrets,” said Osburn. “I want everyone to know where to get all the good stuff.”